A former Wrexham care home worker accused of forcing a child to scrub a yard with their own toothbrush was a “role model for young people”, a court heard.

Keith Alan Evans, 71, of Main Road, Rhosrobin, who was in charge of disciplining vulnerable youngsters at Bryn Alyn, faces six counts of historic child cruelty.

The offences are alleged to have been committed against six boys and one girl at the privately-owned care home between 1976 and 1983.

Co-defendant Kelvin Horriben, 63, from Beeston, Nottinghamshire, who used to supervise punishments, faces a separate charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm against one boy.

The pair, arrested as part of the ongoing Operation Pallial investigation into historic abuse in the region’s care system, have pleaded not guilty to all charges.

During the trial at Chester Crown Court, sitting as Mold, one of Evans’ former colleagues today gave evidence before the jury.

'Reliable, honest and hardworking'

Defence witness and former care home team leader Russell Evans, who worked with the defendant for a short period, described him as “reliable, honest and hardworking”.

He told the court: “He was a steady influence, a role model for young people. I was more than happy with his interactions with residents.”

The trial has previously heard how Evans allegedly made some children clean floors, toilets and the outside yard on their hands and knees for weeks at a time as part of a punishment known as ‘scrubs’.

Giving evidence Mr Evans said the children had given the sanction its nickname, adding that it was known as a ‘work programme’ among staff.

'Tactic to discourage absconding'

He told the court it usually involved cleaning the dining room and bathrooms for a short period after the other residents had gone to bed, and was handed out in serious cases of children running away.

Mr Evans said children “potentially would have been” in shorts and T-shirts to carry out such jobs – a tactic to discourage absconding.

He added that 90% of ‘scrubs’ took place indoors, lasting a maximum of a week, and were “domestic jobs you would do in your house”.

Mr Evans said: “It would have to be agreed by other members of the team. You couldn’t set up something draconian and expect everyone else to go along with it.”

David Potter, defending, asked the witness if children were ever asked to perform cleaning tasks with their own toothbrushes or whether he ever witnessed it happening.

Mr Evans replied “absolutely not” to both questions, adding that such a punishment would result in staff being “subject to disciplinary action”.

Catherine Donnelly, assisting Eleanor Laws QC as part of the prosecuting team, said that in relation to the timescale of the alleged offences, Mr Evans only worked with the defendant for a “short period” as he left Bryn Alyn in late 1977/early 1978.

She asked Mr Evans whether he considered the defendant to be authoritarian, to which he responded: “No”.